One foot at a time | One sole at a time | One hell of a good time

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Saturday, May 14, 2005

Palos Verdes Marathon -- Finished in 3:31!

Howdy Folks

Very pleased to report the successful completion of my second marathon. My new PR is 3:31, just 11 minutes shy of qualifying for the Boston Marathon. I was 30th overall (actually 6 other runners all finished in 3:31, 24th place to 30th).

There were 7 barefoot runners this year. I was first place in the barefoot pseudo-division. This glory won't last for long, but I am going to soak it up while it is here.

A BIG! thanks to Barefoot Ken and RunningBarefoot.org. Without his dedication to barefoot running, I wouldn't even be running!

Luckily, my running group, The Wild Mountain Runners, got in the race for just $10 because we had a bunch of volunteers. Freddie Perez (64) and Patti ran the marathon with me.

Here's what a local had to say about the race:

I first ran Palos Verdes 35 years ago and it retains its small town aura. This is the 6th time I've run P.V. Most runners are locals who know about the course, want to run a marathon, and don't have their hearts set on a PR.

The rugged coastline scenery, the lovely neighborhoods and the hills -- you're climbing or descending most of the time -- define the course. I think it is southern California's response to Big Sur.

I treated the event as a long run where I was wearing a race number. The Palos Verdes trademark is that you must finish before you get your shirt. They also have been giving out finisher's medals for at least the last five years.

I sincerely hope I can remain healthy enough to run this again sometime in the future. It is very tough, but you get out of it what you put into it.